GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the six brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and five have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $14.25.

EAF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of GrafTech International in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of GrafTech International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on GrafTech International from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its position in GrafTech International by 42.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 27,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 8,188 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GrafTech International in the second quarter worth about $42,000. CWM LLC grew its holdings in GrafTech International by 63.7% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 66,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 25,818 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its holdings in GrafTech International by 17.0% during the first quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 95,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 13,901 shares during the period. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new position in GrafTech International during the first quarter valued at approximately $103,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.83% of the company’s stock.

GrafTech International Stock Up 3.8%

GrafTech International stock opened at $16.72 on Friday. GrafTech International has a twelve month low of $5.50 and a twelve month high of $20.32. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $14.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.11. The company has a market cap of $431.71 million, a PE ratio of -2.12 and a beta of 1.72.

GrafTech International (NYSE:EAF) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 24th. The company reported ($1.03) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $144.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $139.58 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that GrafTech International will post -0.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About GrafTech International

GrafTech International (NYSE: EAF) is a leading global manufacturer of graphite electrodes and other specialty graphite products used primarily in electric arc furnaces (EAFs) for steel production. The company’s core offerings include ultrahigh-power, high-power and regular power electrodes, along with related accessories such as graphite shapes and heterogeneous carbon materials. These products play a critical role in steelmaking by conducting the high electrical currents required to melt scrap steel efficiently and with reduced environmental impact compared to traditional blast furnace methods.

With a manufacturing footprint spanning North America, Europe and Asia, GrafTech serves steel producers and foundries worldwide.